December 16, 2011
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Wasabi Chi
Positive Energy
This column recently noted that expansion within some restaurant genres has become clonal. Successful new dining concepts seem to inspire copycats rather than innovators. In the last ten years the metro added lots of new sushi joints, Chinese restaurants and sports bars with little differences among them. When Skybox tried offering radically different sports bar cuisine, they went quickly out of business. It doesn’t need to be this way. Cityview’s recent Ultimate Pizza Challenge revealed that our pizzerias serve a rather amazing variety of pies and yet they all have legions of loyal fans. That would suggest that Des Moines would respond to a bold soul willing to buck the cloning trends.
Meet Jay Wang. He grew up in southern China, moved to New York City as a teen and later went to Japan to study its cuisine under masters. He says that English is his sixth language. He’s been running Japanese and Chinese restaurants in Philadelphia and New York but after starting a family he decided to move to Des Moines for a less hectic life style. He brought some of his well trained staff with him and opened Wasabi Chi last month. While that restaurant emulates a recent trend of combining Japanese cuisine with popular Chinese and Thai dishes, it does so with original methods and personalized style.
As the name suggests, Wasabi Chi observes principles of feng shui (the flow of “chi,” meaning energy) with thoughtful division of spaces and placement of waterfalls, mirrors, colors, and furniture. Wang’s kitchen creates its own positive energy. Tempura dishes came with ginger aioli in addition to the usual accompaniment of dashi (fish based soup stock), mirin (rice wine) and soy sauce. Shrimp had been treated with salt and pepper before being battered. Dumplings were cooked in home made wrappers. Squid salad was made with black fungus and cucumbers that had been completely seeded and peeled.
Crispy rock shrimp were served on fresh mesclun with a sauce made of sweet potatoes, honey and spiced cream.
A shrimp mango salad included ripe mangoes, fresh mesclun and cashews that had been pan toasted in honeyed oil.
Divine ceviche included tender octopus, shrimp, whitefish, tuna and salmon bathing in a sweet acid bath of lime juice.
Sushi and sashimi were spectacularly presented.
One plate that combined the two styles was served on bamboo leaves and adorned with giant mint and edible orchids.
A simple sashimi lunch platter was served on a rack constructed of bamboo twigs raised on a core of compacted cucumber seeds.
Thick cuts of raw fish had been subtly treated – some briefly marinated in saki, others in sea salt, peppers and black sesame. Sushi rice was also treated with more than just rice vinegar. While recipes were familiar, execution was exceptional on Godzilla rolls (spicy tuna and fresh avocado with a panko crumb sprinkle),
Ocean 3 (spicy tuna, salmon, yellowtail and avocado in a roll that was rolled in tobikko) and Pacific rolls (blackened tuna, avocado, tobikko).
Hibachi dishes were distinguished by good cuts of beef but lackluster broccoli. Japanese fried rice was flavored with garlic, a near blasphemy within the subtle cuisine of Japan but not inappropriate for Iowans.
Noodles hinted of garlic too. Cocktails were also served with considerable style.
My only complaints have been that wasabi is inconsistent, sometimes spicier and fresher than others, and that pickled ginger is not the best. Customers are responding well. Dinner business has been so good Wang‘s recruiting an additional chef.
Bottom line – This is the new benchmark for sushi/Asian fusion in Iowa.
Wasabi Chi
5418 Douglas Ave., 528-8246
Mon. – Thurs. 11 a.m. – 10 p.m., Fri. – Sat. 11 a.m. – 11 p.m., Sun. noon – 10 p.m. A daily happy hour (3 – 5:30) offers half price appetizers & sushi rolls.
Side Dishes
Orange Leaf frozen yogurt opened new stores in West Des Moines and Urbandale… Scooter’s Coffeehouse announced a new Yoji frozen yogurt shop in their new store in Urbandale.
